Material Blades
by Pata Hikari
Summary: While resting in Miguel, Cless encounters a man who knows something about the swords he has obtained. The man calls himself Kratos.


_Records found in Thor depict a hero who wielded both the Vorpal Sword and the Flamberge. He is shown fighting with Angels beside him, defeating an evil god._

_-From the Alvanista Archaeological Journal._

Material Blades

By Pata Hikari

Cless leaned back against the tree, enjoying the sunshine. They were all resting in Miguel, Chester was exploring this strange new version of their hometown. Klarth was examining some magical text books in the library, somewhat happy to discover that his research on Summon Spirits had given him a very nice place in history. Arche was flirting with the boys at the local tavern. And Mint was sitting by the river that flowed through the town, apparently fishing, though it looked like she had fallen asleep. She looked rather cute, clutching the fishing pole in her hands, with the Unicorn Horn sticking out of her pack. He smiled fondly, before finally deciding to stand up, before he too, surrendered to sleep. Picking up the two swords and the shield sitting by his side, he walked over to Mint. Grinning slightly, he grabbed the Unicorn Horn and started poking her with it, "Hey, wake up, lazy girl!"

Jolting awake, Mint jumped straight up, "Sorry Mom! I'll do my chores!" she said quickly, before looking around, and realizing that she wasn't in her home. "What was that for?" she asked the young swordsman.

Cless shrugged, "I was bored." he said honestly.

Mint shook her head, smiling slightly, "Well, who's idea was it to rest here before we go to Origin?"

Cless smiled sheepishly, "Alright, so it was my idea, but hey, we needed a break. But that still doesn't solve my boredom."

Mint shrugged, "You could always practice, I like watching you do that, and I'm sure the workout would help your boredom."

Cless looked at the two blades strapped to his side, normally he only held one sword, but now he had two, it felt strange. "Hmm, I guess you have a point." he pulled out a sword out of the large scabbard, it was a strange weapon, made from some strange blue metal, it almost looked like ice frozen for eternity, complete with a beautiful silver hilt, the Vorpal Sword.

"No, I've seen you use that in Odin's Tower," Mint said, "Try the other one out." she sounded somewhat excited, like a child seeing a new toy.

"The Flamberge?" Cless asked, sheathing the Vorpal Sword, and drawing the other sword in his possession, it too, was a strange weapon, appearing to be made from frozen fire, it had an elegant golden hilt to match. "Well, I've never used it before, I think I will try it out." He held the flaming sword in front of him, swinging it quickly, he recalled the lessons his father had taught him. Within a matter of moments, he was moving effortlessly, the Flamberge truly felt like he was wielding fire itself. Mint watched eagerly, for some reason watching him fight fascinated her, though she almost never got the opportunity to see, because often she was fighting at the same time.

A few minutes passed quickly, then, something interrupted them. "Help me!" a voice called out.

"What the?" Cless snapped out of his semi-trance, looking around for the source of the threat, "What's going on now?" he groaned, he wondered if Dhaos had decided to cause more trouble, just what they needed.

"Um…" Mint saw a man running towards them, "I think that's the man…oh brother…" Mint groaned when she saw the reason the man was running.

"Huh?" Oh…geez…" Cless slapped his forehead.

"Help me please! She's crazy!" the terrified man shouted, as he continued to run from the one perusing him.

"Come back here you perverted bastard!" Arche shouted, chasing after the man, she was clearly drunk. **_"Fireball!"_** she shouted, a ball of flame forming in her hands, before she flung it forward, it wobbled on a strange path, however, and missed the man by a mile. That didn't deter the pink haired half-elf, though. "When I get my hands on you I'm going to shove an Indignation up your ass!" she screamed.

"What did you do to her?" Cless asked the man, who was now cowering behind him.

"He groped me!" Arche was now in front of Cless, who was now the only thing standing between a pissed off witch and her target. One really has to pity him.

"I did not! She's drunk!" the man shouted, "She was making a spectacle of herself, dancing on the counter, and I pulled her down, then she started screaming about how I groped her, and she began throwing fireballs at me!"

"He violated me Cless!" Arche slurred, she seemed to be calming down, "He touched me, I'm sure he had all sorts of horrible, perverted thoughts about me…" by now she was sniffling, "Though I don't mind if **_you _**grope me Cless." she grinned drunkenly, before passing out.

Cless rolled his eyes, "Can you help her out, Mint?"

Mint nodded, trying hard not to giggle, "Sure," she held the Unicorn Horn over Arche, **_"Recover." _**a white light shined over Arche.

"My head…" Arche groaned as she sat up, "I'm never drinking again."

"Didn't you say that last time?" Klarth asked, apparently have came over when he had heard the commotion.

"What's going on?" Chester asked, he two had ran over to the source of noise, his bow was out as well.

"The usual," Klarth explained, "We stop in town, Arche goes to bar, Arche gets drunk, Arche threatens man with bodily harm, Mint heals Arche."

"You know what? **_Shut up!" _**Arche growled at the summoner.

"OK…" Chester said, "So…what do we do now?"

"Why don't we see Martel!" Mint smiled, an idea coming to her, "We haven't seen her in a hundred and fifty years."

"Martel?" Chester asked.

"A spirit of the Great Tree, we helped her out in the past, to make sure that there was magic still in the world." Cless said.

"That does sound like a good idea, let me get my broom." Arche laughed.

* * *

The forest where the Great Tree resided in had changed little over the years. Wild boars still lived in it, and the trees grew everywhere. As the group continued to move, Cless heard a faint voice. 

"It's been a while, it's strange to see that you're still alive." It was Martel.

"I wanted to see this place one more time, before I leave." This voice was a new one, that of a mans.

"You still have the crystal, I see."

"Yes, but I will be…someone's coming."

The group entered the clearing where the Great Tree sat, there was Martel, the slightly panicked expression on her face quickly faded when she saw them, "No need to worry, it is merely Cless and the others."

The man who had been speaking turned to look at them, he looked to be in his mid twenties, dark red hair covered part of his face, black armor covered his body, complete with a cape of the same color. Strapped to his side was a sword, and on his right had was a strange red jewel, held on by a golden stand. "I see, so this is the boy who helped you."

"Who are you?" Klarth asked, "And how do you know Martel?"

The man smirked, "I am Kratos, I have aided Martel in the past, I am merely visiting her."

"Well, then It's nice to meet you, Kratos." Mint said.

"Likewise." Kratos nodded, "Well, I'd best be going."

"It was nice to see you again." Martel said, "So, Cless, what brings you here?"

"Well, we came to visit, is that OK?" Cless asked, as Kratos walked past.

"What's this?" Kratos muttered, as his eyes spotted the two swords strapped to Cless' side. "How strange…why does he have them?"

* * *

Reentering Miguel, the group felt a little shaken. After talking with Martel for a while, Dhaos had appeared, for a moment it looked like they were going to fight, but Dhaos backed off, out of respect for the Great Tree, it seemed. Now they wanted nothing more then to just rest at the inn for the night, and hope tomorrow nothing bad happens. Entering the inn, the deposited their Gald, and moved to the tables, to sit down for some dinner before going to bed. 

"Hello again, Cless." They turned to see Kratos sitting at a table, "Come, I'll buy you all dinner if you talk with me for a while.

"Um…sure." Cless nodded, as the rest of the group agreed and they all sat down at the table Kratos was sitting at, "So, what did you want to talk about?" Cless asked.

"Those swords you carry." Kratos answered.

"Why do you wanna talk about Cless' swords?" Arche asked, eyeing Kratos suspiciously.

"Call it curiosity, may I see them?" Kratos said coolly.

"I don't see why not…" Cless slowly pulled out the two swords, placing them on the table.

Kratos examined them for a moment, "I see, it is as I thought, these are the Material Blades."

"The Material Blades?" Chester asked.

"The Vorpal Sword and the Flamberge. Together these two weapons are called he Material Blades, because they can form the Eternal Sword." Kratos explained, running a finger down Flamberge.

"You know about them?" Mint said.

"You might say that." Kratos said, "It's been a while since I've had need to think about them. Though there is an interesting story behind them."

"We know that, how the two swords were used as weapons during the war between Odin and Fenrir." Klarth folded his arms.

"I wasn't talking about that." Kratos eyed Klarth, "It's sad to think that these two weapons were used against each other, because they were originally used together."

"Really, can you tell us the story?" Mint asked.

Kratos nodded, "I don't see why not, this is the story behind the Material Blades:"

"Once, long ago, there was a mighty god. This god had many powerful angels by his side. He was a wise and skillful god, he wielded the Eternal Sword, a weapon that could control creation, which was forged by his order. One day, there was a great and terrible war, one that nearly destroyed the world. Yet, the god ended the war, then, using the Eternal Sword, he split the world in two, to keep the two sides from ever meeting and fighting again. So, for a while, there was peace.

Yet, as the years passed, the god changed. He grew arrogant, he felt himself superior to all others. Soon, this god had changed, from a kind and benevolent ruler, to a cruel tyrant. The years passed, and the people of the two worlds suffered. Finally, his Angels realized what the god had become, and abandoned him. They left heaven for the two worlds. One angel met a human woman, and fell in love. Together they had a son, yet the evil god had found his angel, he was furious. The Angel was punished for leaving. Then, he was forced to return to heaven, leaving his son behind.

The Angel's Son was raised by another man, the Angel thinking that his son was dead.

Time passed, and the terrible god chose a woman to be a sacrifice to him. The Angel's son, now a full grown man, cared for the woman, and did not desire her to be sacrificed. He opposed the god, so the tyrant sent an Angel to kill him. This Angel was the father, who had lost his son all those years ago, yet he could not tell his son, for the god had forbidden it.

But the Angel's Son soon discovered his parentage, and he was shocked. Yet his father still had no choice but to fight him. So the Angel and his son did battle, until the son prevailed, defeating his father. The Angel gave his son his sword, a weapon that could burn a city with one swing. This mighty blade was the Flamberge.

Meanwhile, the man who raised the Angel's Son also gave him a sword, one that could freeze fire, the Vorpal Sword.

These two weapons in hand, the Angel's Son went to heaven to confront the god. The Eternal Sword abandoned the god, going to the Angel's Son instead. Using the two swords, as well as a ring forged from material from heaven, the Angel's Son took the Eternal Sword, placing the two parts of it in his weapons. He did battle with the god.

It was a terrible battle, yet in the end, the Angel's Son won, and he used the Eternal Sword to return the world to normal. And peace came once more."

Kratos finished his story, by that time the whole inn had stopped to listen to him.

"Wow, that was an interesting story." Cless said, a bit surprised at the level of emotion that Kratos had put into the story.

"That was nice and all, but I doubt it's true." Arche said, looking up from her menu.

"Really, what makes you think that?" Kratos asked.

"I mean, it's just not possible, for one thing, who knows if Angels really exist? Also, how could a kid kill a god?"

Kratos shook his head, "You should be asking yourselves how a group of children can defeat Dhaos." he looked at them calmly.

Looking at Kratos with some surprised, it was finally Klarth who answered, "That's different, Dhaos is powerful, yes, but he isn't a god."

"What separates gods and mortals but power?" Kratos said, "Dhaos is powerful, he can control the very fabric of existence, he has lived for as long as anyone can remember, he can control others with ease. Sounds like a god to me." Kratos tilted his head to the side, "And what about the Summon Spirits that you've made pacts with? Could not they be considered gods?"

Chester nodded, "He makes a good point…wait, how do you know all this?"

"Martel told me." Kratos explained.

"Still, I don't believe it." Arche said.

"Believe it if you wish, but I know it to be true." Kratos said, taking a sip from a cup.

"Hey, the foods here." Mint said, "Didn't you say you would be paying, Kratos?" An impish smile formed on her face.

Kratos gave a small sheepish smile, "I believe I did."

* * *

Cless couldn't sleep, it was something strange, normally he never had trouble sleeping, but tonight, that strange warrior, Kratos, was on his mind. Something about the man seemed…off. It wasn't anything he could pin down, but it was still there, knowing at the back of his mind. 

"Cless?" It was Mint, "Are you awake?" she whispered.

"Yup." Cless sat up, looking at the healer, "Is something wrong?"

"I just can't sleep…" Mint sighed, a faint blush forming on her face, "I know this sounds silly…"

"Is it about Kratos?" Cless asked, "Because something about him is keeping me up too."

Mint nodded, the blush fading as slight relief came over her face instead, "That story he told, it sounded almost like stories my mother used to tell me about her youth."

"Um, what do you mean by that?" Cless asked, getting out of bed.

"You know, like it was really important to him, or that it actually happened to him. Something like that." Mint shook her head, "I know it sounds silly."

"No, it's fine." Cless took Mint's hand, "I can understand."

"You think so?" Mint asked, "Hey Cless, do you want to go for a walk?" she asked.

Cless nodded, "Sure."

A moment passed as the two walked to the exit of the inn.

"Um…you can let go of my hand now.." Mint muttered, her face beet red.

"Oh…" Cless flushed, "Sorry…" he let go, and the two of them went outside.

"It's nice, isn't it?" Mint asked, things are always so peaceful at night."

"Yeah.." Cless nodded, and the two of them continued there stroll around Miguel. For a while they moved in silence, until they saw another person sitting at the edge of the river. "Who's that?" Mint asked.

"I can't tell." Cless walked over to the person, he managed to get pretty close, before there was a blur of motion, and Cless found a sword pressed against his throat.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Kratos said, putting his sword away, "Past experience dictates that someone standing behind me is likely to attack."

"Well…er.." Cless sighed, "Well, at least nobody got hurt."

"What are you doing out here anyway?" Cless asked.

"Counting the stars." Kratos answered, "I always count the stars when I can't sleep."

Mint looked up at the sky, "That would take a long time, I guess it works for putting you to sleep though."

Kratos nodded, "That it does, you're both welcome to join me."

Nodding, Cless and Mint sat down next to Kratos, for a few minutes, they relaxed in the peaceful night.

"Hey look," Cless pointed to the sky, "Tethe'alla is eclipsing Sylvarant." The larger of the two moons was moving over the other, Tethe'alla was just barely overlapping Sylvarant, yet it was clear that the two would be aligned at a later date. "That doesn't happen often, does it?"

"Once every two hundred years." Kratos said, "It's an interesting sight. A century from now it will be Sylvarant over Tethe'alla."

"Wow, we're seeing something really rare." Mint said, "I wonder what it looks like the other way?"

"We'll have to see that once we get the Eternal Sword." Cless smiled, "I promise I'll let you see the moons eclipsing."

Mint smiled softly, "Thanks Cless."

Kratos continued to look up at the sky, "When the fallen god split the world, the two new worlds were called Tethe'alla and Sylvarant."

"Really? Weird." Cless said.

"I believe you, Kratos." Mint said, "I'm sorry if Arche doesn't, she's just slightly more skeptical."

"It's alright." Kratos said, "I'm just glad I got to tell it, and that I got to see those swords…one last time."

"You've seen these before?" Mint asked, a bit surprised.

"Long ago, no need for you two to worry about it." Kratos sighed, his voice taking on a strange tone of sadness, "Cless, I have a favor to ask of you."

"What is it?" the young swordsman asked.

"When you get the Eternal Sword, I want you to use it to destroy this." Kratos pulled the red jewel off his hand, handing it to Cless.

"What?" Cless looked at the gem in his hand, "But-"

"Just do it, please, I need it to be done, I would feel better if you did it." Kratos said, looking at Cless with a far-away look, "You remind me of my son, Cless. Please do it, for the sake of people who suffered under tyrants throughout history."

Cless nodded slowly, "Kratos…who are you?" he asked.

"I was once a mercenary, I was once a husband to a wonderful woman, I was once a father, I was once many things. But now…I am merely a man," Kratos said softly, a single tear coming down his face. "Farewell, may you save this world like Lloyd did, so long ago." With that, Kratos walked away.

Cless was crying, he didn't know why, something about this man…Mint was sobbing as well, "Wait!" He called out, "I believe you too!" he shouted, "I promise, I'll destroy this jewel with the Eternal Sword! And I **_will_** save this world from Dhaos!"

Kratos turned to look at Cless and Mint, he smiled, before vanishing from sight.

* * *

They had done it! 

Origin had fallen to their power, now they were free to make the Eternal Sword!

"What are you waiting for Cless?" Klarth asked.

"I'm getting them." Cless pulled out the Vorpal Sword, placing it by the stone tablet. He then drew the Flamberge, for a moment he looked at the weapon…and something caught his eye, something he hadn't noticed before. It was an engraving, Cless looked at it for a moment, reading the words inscribed into the bottom of the blade.

Cless suddenly forgot to breathe.

"Is something wrong?" Chester asked.

"No…it's nothing." Cless quickly placed Flamberge next to the Vorpal Sword, along with the diamond ring.

Origin began his work, making the two Material Blades into the Eternal Sword. Yet, Cless was only paying slight attention, because the words he had found on the sword kept running through his head.

_Lloyd, I'm sorry to have missed out on so much of your life. This sword I'm giving you can only be the first of many ways I am going to make it up to you. Please, use this to stop Mithos._

_Your Father, Kratos._

**The End.**


End file.
